Tag Archives: Holy Shmoly

I’m reading “Lies (And the Lying Liars Who Tell Them)” by Al Franken (thank you Mark for the lend of the book!), and while it’s a good read, Al is a little too glib for my liking. That’s why I went searching and found, this which I’m certain I’ll be told is a right-wing nutcase website, but just goes to show that neither side of the Republican/Democratic battle are to be trusted!(In Al’s defence, I’m really enjoying his book, but he’s preaching to the converted here..)

Very, very silly discussion about which is better: 3MP or 5MP cameras. The author of a linked article suggests that there’s no appreciable difference between both types of sensors. I just wonder if he’s ever tried to print out either in a large format..
This thread proved enlightening. There’s a small symbol at the bottom-right of the Sony F717 camera that wasn’t explained in the manual. It’s simply to show the user that he can use the jog dial to change camera settings.. Sony manuals do need more work from their authors. Here’s more on the same and other manual stuff.

CSS Playground and Well-Designed Weblogs: An Introduction are on my reading list tomorrow. Thank you delicious for pointing me there.

Interesting explanation of MVC here and although based in a JSP world it’s simple and to the point. Then again, maybe MVC isn’t right for PHP development. (I certainly don’t agree, most of my new projects at work use MVC now and it’s a God-send for keeping file size down and organising code!)

Oh yeah, look for me on Orkut.. I’m the only donncha on there! 🙂

Almost exactly a month since I reported that 5 people were killed on Irish roads, 5 people were killed, and 17 injured in Dublin when a bus toppled over into people waiting at a bus stop on Wellington Quay in Dublin. Now it appears that CIÉ were warned two weeks ago of how dangerous the location was. What does it take for a large bureaucratic organisation to fix things?

From our roving reporter, John, at the scene, comes the news that the Crow’s Nest Bar and Restaurant burnt down this morning! I passed there around 9:30 and the place was fine. 🙁
I couldn’t find any photos online, but here’s a review of the place from the SBPost.

Yer man on the motor bike is back and this time I had the camera ready!

Yay! The smoking ban is to come into force on March 29! I can’t wait! I absolutely detest the lingering smell from a night out.
Micheál Martin is on TodayFM right now playing it up for the media. I hope there won’t be any more delays in implementing the ban. *fingers crossed*

Like many of us, Jeremy’s started doing his own homebrew financial planning. I’ve been budgeting using OpenOffice Calc since October and it’s been a great boon while trying to figure out if I can afford a house. (I can, just about!)
Anyway, scroll down the comments on that page – I posted a very brief outline of setting up a budget spreadsheet. I want to start writing a larger article soon to post here on buying a house and budgeting is a major part of it!

A guy was doing “stoppies” on his motorbike outside the office a few minutes ago. ‘Course he had finished doing them by the time I thought of grabbing the camera, but it’s ready now in case he tries again. Zoom is handy.
(For those that don’t know, a stoppie on a motorbike is a wheelie on the front wheel ..)
He’s not the only one doing wheelies of course!
Damn, he’s gone.
Oh yeah, watch out Galway.. Italian friend of mine, Andrea, is visiting at Easter and me and a few lads might be joining him up there! 🙂

Interesting spin on this story from RTE..
Niall Doyle, Corporate Affairs Manager, Irish Insurance Federation, says that the drop is due to fewer check points on Ireland’s roads
While the Garda Superintendent, John Farrelly, says that the figures are down because driver behaviour has improved.
Hehe. who to believe?

Here’s a handy list of the motor taxes payable in this country. There’s a popup on the page but you’re using Mozilla or a popup-killer aren’t you? 🙂
Hmm.. I need a “boring but need to know” or “When In Ireland” category don’t I? This post and the last one aren’t exactly earth-shatteringly interesting or exciting but definitely worth knowing. Oh sorry, half of you have stopped reading already. Those that get here, pat yerselves on the back for being persistent!

No, this is not a spam! I read a comparision between VHI and Bupa in the Irish Times Health supplement this morning and it’s worth mentioning here.
It appears that 50% of Irish people have private health insurance, but that only 6% of them ever change their insurance provider. Of those that do, most cite cost-savings as the main reason for the move. I’m one of those 6% and that’s the reason I moved to Bupa too.
A PDF file comparing both services is available from the Health Insurance Authority on this page but it’s not very friendly and hasn’t been editorialised. I’ve no idea where the original article is on the Irish Times website. Check out the dead-tree version for that!